To summarize the pack dynamics, Denali is getting some more active testing behavior from the pups, especially Luna who seems to pin Denali on a regular basis. Most of the time, Aidan is close-by which seems to inhibit Denali’s behavior to defend himself. I wonder about the social bonding between the pups and Denali. Aidan clearly initiates a lot of social behavior rolling over for the pups, whereas Denali doesn't display this behavior very often. He's more inclined to wrestle with the pups and take their food, which might be why he's getting the pinning response from Luna.
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Grizzer is getting extra attention as every level 2 tier evaluation requires handles to do a full body inspection, massage and conduct some standard grooming techniques. This is all good as far as Grizzer is concerned. He's had many full body massages and submissive roll overs this week and after staff is done, he is back to doing the Grizzer 500, where he runs to the back of the enclosure, comes to playbow to staff then takes off again. He has a spring in his step that is not characteristic of a wolf going on 9 years of age.
Luna continues to have some stiff moments after she rests for a long period of time, but she is very active. I think the cold is an issue, but she frequently uses the straw beds to insulate her from the compacted snow. When she’s active, she is extremely mobile and agile, defending food, scent rolling and lunging after anyone who tries to take her food cache. The fortunate thing is that we are past the solstice, so days are getting longer, the sun is getting warmer and even though we have months of winter ahead, if we can get her to lie down in a straw bed, her black coat absorbs heat better than any of the other wolves.
It's always hard to watch Shadow on the off days. He's been such a dynamic leader for so many years that his submissive moments towards Malik are more pronounced. As I've said before, we have a great deal of concern for Shadow under any type of immobilization drugs, so a decision to drug him for a complete medical exam and bloodwork has to be weighed carefully, especially in cold temperatures. He's still eating OK and he is the most active wolf to greet the staff, so at this point, I will continue to document his on and off days, try to correlate to any parameter such as weather, food consumption, scat condition, water consumption and behavioral interactions to see if we can identify a pattern. Since this situation seems to have occurred 3 or 4 times this winter, we hope to see some patterns to the symptoms.
Red Paw is 23 days old today. We also took another measurement on their height, actually, it was taken while they were sleeping, a measurement from the bottom of there paw to the top of the shoulder blade. Red Paw is 25.5 cm tall. The most noteable behavior was the voluntary wag of the tail. Every day their coordination continues to improve, and in the last week, we have observed several involuntary muscle and nerve spasms. But today, Red Paw clearly did a tail wag with a playbow to one of the caretakers. Red Paw has been showing more dominant postures, doing a full stand-over on Attila. The other behavior that is noted is the howling to the main pack. On several occasions, Red Paw howls back when the main pack starts. During one howling session, Red Paw appeared to be fast asleep, lifted his head and howled, then fell asleep again. In the video this week, you will see him tucked underneath the stuffed moose. He seems to find comfort in closed places, and the moose seemed like a good fit. The audio recording is a portion of his howl during his sleep. The howl lasted one minute and 4 seconds, due to file restrictions in these pages, you are hearing 20 seconds worth.
After a long winter, the water line finally thawed while we were at the Wildlife Science Center picking up the pups. We were surprised to return to Ely at 1:30 in the morning to find the pond full. We haven’t had a chance to install the pump or rake straw, but at least the pack has water if the daytime temperatures get too hot prior to their complete shedding. Maya is very stimulated by the pups to whine in a social response, as well as Shadow. We are certain that these two will make great surrogate parents.
Since the pups were first introduced to the Exhibit Pack through the fence, Shadow has had many behavioral responses. He has used direct eye contact and growled to wolf care staff holding the pups; this is an indication of possessive behavior, and threatening behavior. He has also bark-howled at unfamiliar people in the wolf yard. This is an alarm or warning vocalization telling someone to get out of the territory, in this case, the wolf yard. He has a high pitch whine nearly matching Maya in intensity when the pups arrive. He is salivating when the pups are present, including excessive licking toward the pups and at the corner of his mouth. This may be an indication of a hormonal response. He is very social with wolves and wolf care staff alike that enter the enclosure, this makes wolf care very relaxed, as the dominant male, Shadow’s behavior and energy can impact how the rest of the pack interacts. Shadow and Maya are critical in this pup introduction.
Attila is 22 days old today and continues to be the bolder pup of the two. In anticipation of the summer pup programs that begin on Thursday, wolf care staff have been taking the pups into the auditorium each evening to get them used to the environment before they meet a crowd of people. So far, Attila is the curious wanderer, ready to take on anything that comes his way. He continues to be more likely to seek out contact than Red Paw. There is one new behavior to report today, both Red Paw and Attila demonstrated a Play Bow, a behavior where they lower themselves on their front legs, and spring up to pounce on something. The stuffed moose has been a source of behavioral stimulation. It’s mere presence has brought out more predatory motor skills such as pouncing, biting, headshaking and grab biting. These behaviors are innate and present themselves when a stimulus is present. We will continue to bring in items that stimulate behaviors. With the growth rate of the pups nearing nearly .5 lbs per day, they need all the rest they can get. In the audio clips this week, you will hear snoring, and moaning when the pups are sleeping in the dream response.
Attila is 23 days old today, and had a bit of weight loss in the last 24 hours, possibly caused by teething. As I write these logs late on the 20th, he has increased his formula intake and should show a weight tomorrow. Attila's shoulder to paw measurement is 23 cm. While .1 of a pound weight gain is not a great concern, it does put him behind Red Paw, who continues to gain on a daily basis. These weights will fluctuate based on external stimulus, activity and physical situations, but our preference is that they are always gaining. <br>Both pups have been showing signs of dominance towards each other, and more coordination on grabbing and biting. Attila was biting at his legs and the sleeping bag; He bit the stuffed wolf and dragged it around; Both pups are demonstrating stand over behaviors, where one wolf stands erect over another. The head shaking is also a predatory behavior, and this instinct seems to be fully developed. The video today show the bite response on the ear of the stuffed moose, and the audio recording is of a dream phase when Attila is vigorously kicking his legs.
Malik's camera is mounted, and while it is too cold to put water in his pond now, we anticipate viewers will see some pond activity on the camera, as well as his favorite resting spot on the den. His Youtube video shows him enjoying a beaver, and very content with the spring melt.
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